I Accidentally Triggered the Restricted Punishment Protocol - Chapter 8

Yi Hanxing froze where she stood.

For a moment, there was silence. The guest room was so quiet that the only thing she could hear was her own heartbeat, pounding louder and louder against her ribs, as if it were about to burst through her chest.

Was he not asleep? Why is he standing here? Did he discover something? Or rather…

Qin Wuzhou’s brilliant golden pupils shifted upward again, settling on her face. “You are sweating a lot.”

Yi Hanxing let out a dazed “Ah,” then remembered to wipe it away with her sleeve. After a few frantic rubs, she managed to ask, “Master, why are you not sleeping?”

Qin Wuzhou stared at her intently. He did not answer. Instead, he simply said, “You stayed in the washroom for a very long time just now.”

Yi Hanxing hesitated for a while before blurting out, “I… I ate something that upset my stomach.”

Qin Wuzhou’s tone was flat. “You have already entered the Qi Refining stage. Can you still suffer discomfort from mortal food?”

Yi Hanxing did not know how cultivators in this world worked, but she could only brace herself and nod. “Mhm.”

Qin Wuzhou glanced at her one more time before finally drawing a conclusion: “As expected, you are far too weak.”

Although his words were harsh, he did not seem suspicious. Yi Hanxing breathed a secret sigh of relief.

She was gradually getting used to this man’s spontaneous, high-frequency mockery. Treating it as mere wind past her ears, she hurried toward the bed to escape him. “I am fine now. Master should rest as well.”

Qin Wuzhou gave a light cough, signaling her to stop. “Light the lamp first.”

Yi Hanxing was confused. She turned to look at him. “How can we sleep with the lamp lit?”

Qin Wuzhou insisted, “Just light it.”

Yi Hanxing had to change course. She fumbled in the dark to find a candle on the table and struck a match.

As the tiny flame flickered to life, the cow cat Qin Wuzhou flicked his tail. Without a word, he jumped onto the top of the high wardrobe and curled up.

It was only after she crawled back under her covers that Yi Hanxing realized: This man stayed awake in the middle of the night, blocking the washroom door… just to have me light the lamp for him?

Strange. He could have done it with a flick of his finger. Did he have to call her just because he was that afraid of the dark?

And unable to sleep without the lights on… what kind of elementary school behavior is that?

Yi Hanxing bit her lip to suppress a laugh and closed her eyes.

As it turned out, one should not get ahead of oneself.

The previous night, she had mocked someone for sleeping with the lights on; today, she was the one looking listless after a night of insomnia.

It was all Qin Wuzhou’s fault! A normal person definitely could not sleep in a brightly lit room!

The cow cat Qin Wuzhou happened to jump down from the wardrobe. As he passed by, he glanced at the dark circles under Yi Hanxing’s eyes and let out a loud “Ha!”

Yi Hanxing: He is definitely mocking me!

Her fist tightened.

Qin Wuzhou urged her on: “Today is the first day of the Great Myriad Treasure Assembly. If you do not set off now, you will not make it in time.”

Yi Hanxing took a breath and honestly bent down, letting the Master cat jump onto her shoulder.

The invitation provided by the innkeeper was enchanted with a small teleportation array that could send participants directly to the assembly site.

Yi Hanxing opened the envelope. A flash of golden light crossed her vision, and in the next moment, she found herself surrounded by a sea of opulence.

Looking around, it felt a bit like a modern opera house. She was currently in the public seating area on the second floor. Above her were two more levels of private boxes; some were already occupied while others remained empty, most shielded by heavy silk curtains to protect the occupants’ privacy.

The first floor had no guest seating. Instead, there was a massive circular stage. Golden light flowed subtly within the white jade floor tiles—likely a protective array for the exhibits. The auctioned items would be displayed there.

Each invitation corresponded to a specific seat, teleporting guests directly to their positions to avoid a chaotic entrance. As Yi Hanxing looked around, many more guests began to materialize.

She quickly realized that among the various men, women, young, and old, she was the only one not wearing a mask.

The passing guests seemed to notice this outlier as well, casting sidelong glances at her.

Yi Hanxing instinctively lowered her head.

Oh no, she thought. This Ghost Market thrives in the shadows. Most people here do not want to be recognized or have their presence used against them, so they attend in disguise. The innkeeper had forgotten to remind her.

Just as she was worrying about whether to pull out her textbook and learn a Disguise Incantation on the spot, her face suddenly felt heavy—a mask had appeared.

The cow cat Qin Wuzhou sat on her lap, tilting his head to admire his handiwork before nodding in satisfaction.

Yi Hanxing could not help but rub his head. “Master, what kind of mask did you make for me with your magic?”

Qin Wuzhou: “A cat. Black and white.”

Yi Hanxing: “Then is it not the same as your cat body?”

Qin Wuzhou took it as a matter of course: “The Master is a black-and-white cat, and the disciple is a black-and-white cat. Is there something wrong with that?”

Yi Hanxing nodded quickly. “Master is absolutely right.”

A pleasant ringing of bells echoed, coming from nowhere yet sounding as if silver bells were chiming from all directions. Although the sound was delicate, the entire venue fell silent.

On the first-floor stage, a hunched old man appeared out of nowhere. His face was veiled by a spell, revealing only a cloud of black mist.

The old man bowed toward the highest private boxes before slowly speaking: “Distinguished guests, you have traveled far. On behalf of the Lord of Wuxiang, I offer my gratitude.”

Yi Hanxing figured the Lord of Wuxiang was the big boss behind the assembly. Judging by the name, the entire Ghost Market likely had an inseparable connection to him.

The old man waved his hand, and a massive scroll materialized in mid-air, listing today’s items.

Someone gasped in shock: “The Blood Coral from the Withered Bone Ruins! Hasn’t that place been occupied by the Demon Clan? How did the Lord obtain it?”

Another person replied: “Is this your first time? The items are not necessarily found by the Lord himself. They are brought in by others who find them hard to sell and put them up for consignment.”

Yi Hanxing was not actually here to bid, so she only gave the floating scroll a cursory glance before starting to peek at her surroundings.

Since everyone was enthusiastically studying the items, no one noticed her suspicious behavior.

She scanned the crowd; everyone was masked, making it impossible to tell who was Lin Wujiu.

In the original book, Lin Wujiu was described as a man like “clear wind and a bright moon,” with a grace like “willows in the spring moon” and a spirit like “snow on a mountain peak.”

In other words, the description told her absolutely nothing.

Yi Hanxing had wanted to criticize the original novel for a long time. It was filled with nothing but flashy, superficial nonsense. Based on descriptions like “willows in the spring moon” and “snow on a mountain peak,” ten out of ten handsome men would fit the bill. In the world of cultivation, almost no one was ugly. If she had to rely on such cookie-cutter, assembly-line descriptions, it would be a miracle if she could find Lin Wujiu among this crowd of masked cultivators.

She glanced back at the cow cat Qin Wuzhou, who sat in his seat as steady as a mountain, eyes closed and resting. Clearly, he had no intention of helping.

If I do not work hard, last night’s nightmare will become a reality.

Yi Hanxing thought for a moment and decided to take a risky gamble.

She placed the cat on the seat and whispered, “I will be right back. Master, stay here and do not move.”

With that, she stood up from her seat, feigned a stumble, and collapsed to the ground. “Ouch!”

It was clearly a fake fall. The floor was covered with thick carpet, and the armrests were wrapped in soft leather. Yet, out of nowhere, some sharp object managed to catch and rip the fabric on her shoulder.

Here it came—one of the classic laws of a “cauldron” in an adult novel: Whenever you fall, your clothes must rip.

The original character lived a low-profile life; her wardrobe consisted of very few personal purchases and was mostly made up of Hehuan Sect uniforms. That was precisely the problem. The uniforms were designed for aesthetics over functionality—light, breathable, and revealing. In short, they were not very sturdy.

Yi Hanxing had done her best to pick the outfit with the most coverage, a light pink long dress that made her look like a modest traveler, but she still could not withstand the cursed settings of this novel.

At this moment, the girl lay weakly on the ground. Her braided hair fell against her pale, slender neck, and a few stray strands of hair rested on her shoulder. Under the light pink gauze, her smooth, jade-like shoulder was partially visible, inviting infinite imagination.

The moment she fell, as if summoned by the irresistible force of the plot, the cultivators in a circle around her all turned their heads. Their faces gradually took on dreamlike, dazed expressions.

“Um, Miss, are you alright?” The nearest male cultivator blushed and reached out a hand, intending to help her up.

Here it came—the second classic law: When encountering a setback, randomly attract a passerby to provide “assistance.”

Yi Hanxing thought expressionlessly: This guy is quite warm-hearted, if only his hand weren’t reaching toward my waist.

“Thank you, Young Master.” Yi Hanxing subtly dodged the “salty pig hand” trying to take advantage of her. She took the opportunity to step on his fingers; the man let out a cry, eyes tearing up as he pulled back his swollen hand.

“Um, could you all please step back a bit?”

Why hasn’t the lead arrived yet? Yi Hanxing quickly scanned the gathering crowd. She had made such a scene specifically to attract Lin Wujiu’s attention.

Major Premise: She was a poor, vulnerable girl who fell down and attracted the attention of ill-intentioned predators. Minor Premise: Lin Wujiu, the Shura Sword of Yuxu Mountain, is chivalrous and kind-hearted; he will draw his sword to help whenever he encounters injustice. Conclusion: Lin Wujiu will come to help this damsel in distress.

After only a moment, her cauldron physique took effect. Seeing more and more low-level cultivators displaying enchanted, hallucinatory smiles, the once-silent assembly hall began to stir with a subtle riot centered around her.

Yi Hanxing nimbly dodged another sinister hand while sighing inwardly. The cauldron physique was such a bug in this setting. Ordinary cultivators with even a slightly weak will were drawn to her, unable to stop themselves from wanting to dual cultivate. The effect was no different from throwing a bag of french fries into a flock of pigeons.

Not far away, in Qin Wuzhou’s golden pupils, the image of the girl surrounded by the crowd was reflected.

She was like a white rabbit falling into a pack of wolves, yet the weak prey herself did not cry for help.

The girl’s face wore a look of feigned panic and helplessness, but only Qin Wuzhou could see the composure and expectation within those watery, deer-like eyes—bright and arresting.

This stupid disciple of mine is… quite different.

Just as he slowly stood up, a warm, youthful voice suddenly came from the crowd: “Everyone, please make way. This lady has already said she does not wish to be surrounded.”

The restless crowd paused. Like the parting of the sea, a path opened, and a gentleman in white walked through.

He was not wearing a mask. The moment Yi Hanxing saw his face, the phrase “grace like willows in the spring moon, spirit like snow on a mountain peak” flashed through her mind.

The author did not lie to me.

He carried a thin, half-person-tall sword on his back, and a string of worn Buddhist beads adorned his right wrist. His gaze was downcast and gentle, yet he radiated brilliance. This person was undoubtedly the Shura Sword, Lin Wujiu.

“Miss, are you able to stand?” Lin Wujiu was indeed as friendly as the book described. His eyes held not a single trace of impure thought as he offered his hand.

Here it is, here it is! My chance to complete the mission and escape Qin Wuzhou’s demonic clutches!

I must leave a deep impression on the original male lead. He is one of the few upright pillars who can resist the cauldron physique!

Yi Hanxing immediately grabbed Lin Wujiu’s arm with both hands, her eyes burning with intensity. “Hello, Immortal! Please dual cultivate with me!”

The entire venue fell into a dead silence.

Outside the crowd, Qin Wuzhou retracted the leg he had stepped forward with and suddenly let out a laugh of ambiguous meaning.